Discover 8 hidden attractions, cool sights, and unusual things to do in St. Ignace (United States). Don't miss out on these must-see attractions: Father Marquette National Memorial, St. Ignace Mission, and Wawatam Lighthouse. Also, be sure to include Straits State Park in your itinerary.
Below, you can find the list of the most amazing places you should visit in St. Ignace (Michigan).
Table of Contents
Father Marquette National Memorial
National memorial in Mackinac County, Michigan. Father Marquette National Memorial pays tribute to the life and work of Jacques Marquette, French priest and explorer. The memorial is located in Straits State Park near St. Ignace in the modern-day U.S. state of Michigan, where he founded a Jesuit mission in 1671 and was buried in 1678. The associated Father Marquette Museum building was destroyed in a fire on March 9, 2000.[1]
St. Ignace Mission
Museum in St. Ignace, Michigan. The St. Ignace Mission is located in a municipal park known as Marquette Mission Park. It was the site of a mission established by Jesuit priest, Father Jacques Marquette, and the site of his grave in 1677. A second mission was established at a different site in 1837, and the chapel was moved here in 1954. The second mission chapel is the oldest Catholic church in Michigan and Wisconsin. The St. Ignace Mission was designated a Michigan State Historic Site in 1956, and was declared a U.S. National Historic Landmarks in 1960, one of the earliest sites recognized. The mission chapel serves as the Museum of Ojibwa Culture.[2]
Address: 560 N State St, 49781-1429 Saint Ignace
Wawatam Lighthouse
Historical landmark in Mackinac County, Michigan. Wawatam Lighthouse is an automated, modern lighthouse that guards the harbor of St. Ignace, Michigan, in the Straits of Mackinac. Originally completely nonfunctional, it was erected in 1998 by the Michigan Department of Transportation near Monroe, Michigan as an iconic roadside attraction at a welcome center that greeted northbound drivers on Interstate 75. After serving in this capacity for six years, the structure was threatened in 2004 when MDOT decided to rebuild the welcome center and demolish the tower.
Demolition was averted when the St. Ignace civic leaders for the Straits of Mackinac municipality, which had never had a light tower, heard of the opportunity and asked that the welded steel tower be given to them, this time for use in real life. Over a two-year period, the redundant structure was cut apart, trucked to St. Ignace, and re-erected, this time as a functional aid to navigation with a working light. The "new" lighthouse was re-lighted in St. Ignace in August 2006. As of 2022, it is one of the final working light towers to be erected in the waters of the United States.[3]
Straits State Park
State park in St. Ignace, Michigan. Straits State Park is a state park in the U.S. state of Michigan located in Moran Township and St. Ignace in Mackinac County on the northern shores of the Straits of Mackinac. The Father Marquette National Memorial and park is also located within the state park boundaries. The park has 255 campsites and several locations for viewing the Mackinac Bridge.[4]
Address: 720 Church St, 49781 Saint Ignace
The Museum of Ojibwa Culture
History museum, Specialty museum, Museum, Historical place
Address: 500 N State St, 49781-1429 Saint Ignace
Castle Rock
Tourist attraction in Mackinac County, Michigan. Castle Rock is a geological limestone stack and tourist attraction located 3 miles north of St. Ignace, Michigan on Interstate 75 in Michigan's Upper Peninsula.[5]
Address: 2811 Mackinac Trl, 49781-9755 Saint Ignace
Fort de Buade Museum
History museum, Museum
Address: North Street, St. Ignace
Marquette Street Archaeological District
The Marquette Street Archaeological District is an archaeological site in St. Ignace, Michigan near the St. Ignace Mission. It covers 6 acres and includes one building, a village site, and a cemetery; archaeological designations are 20MK82 and 20MK99. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1982.[6]